| Hiroshi Tanahashi Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Height | 5 ft 11 in |
| Weight | 101 kg |
| Date of Birth | November 13, 1976 |
| Zodiac Sign | Scorpio |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
Hiroshi Tanahashi is a Japanese professional wrestler, TV personality, bodybuilder, blogger, and actor, best known as the 8-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion for the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) organization. He is also known for holding the record for most successful champion title defenses in the organization with 11 in total. He held the record up until May 5, 2018, which was more than 7 years after he won his 5th Heavyweight Champion title against Satoshi Kojima on January 4, 2011. As of June 2019, Hiroshi is also a 2-time IWGP Intercontinental Champion, 3-time NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champion, and 2-time IWGP Tag Team Champion, and won the G1 Climax tournament in 2007, 2015, and 2018.
Before he began enjoying his time as a professional wrestler in Japan and dedicated his full-time effort in the NJPW organization, he also ventured out and made his North American debut in September 2005 in the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) organization. He also had his debut United States match with the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) organization in January 14, 2006. Hiroshi is also a winner of the MVP Award in 2009, 2011, 2014, and 2018 by Tokyo Sports daily newspaper, and was named “Wrestler of the Year” between 2011 and 2013 by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Hiroshi Tanahashi has also amassed a large fanbase online with more than 400k followers on Twitter.
Born Name
Tanahashi Hiroshi
Nick Name
Tanahashi, The Ace of The Universe, Super Strong Machine Ace, Gokiburi Mask
Sun Sign
Scorpio
Born Place
Ōgaki, Gifu, Japan
Nationality
Education
Hiroshi attended Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Kansai, Japan, and graduated in 1999.
Occupation
Professional Wrestler, Actor, TV Personality, Bodybuilder, Blogger
Build
Bodybuilder
Height
5 ft 11 in or 180.5 cm
Weight
101 kg or 222.5 lbs
Girlfriend / Spouse
Hiroshi Tanahashi has dated –
- Hitomi Hara (2002) – His relationship with a news reporter for TV Asahi became very popular in 2002, but for all the wrong reasons. On the rise of his wrestling career, Hiroshi was stabbed in the back by Hitomi in a fit of rage. The incident threatened to end his career and was covered by all the major media outlets in Japan. It came to light that Hitomi was insanely jealous, and after he told her that he started dating another woman, she stabbed him only 2 times because he defended himself. In court, she revealed that her original plan was to kill him, and then commit suicide. The media would often write about this unfortunate occurrence as “possibly the best thing to ever happen to him,” as it got a massive fanbase interested in his story. His 1st match after getting out of the hospital, held in Tokyo, Japan, on February 16, 2003, was completely sold out in a short period of time.
- In later years, Hiroshi revealed that he was married, and had a son named Shiryu and a daughter named Koharu.
Race / Ethnicity
Asian
He is of Japanese descent.
Hair Color
Light Brown
He often tends to dye his hair ‘Black,’ ‘Dark Brown,’ and ‘Blonde.’
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Tall, bodybuilder physique
- Long fringe haircut
Best Known For
- Being an 8-time IWGP Heavyweight Championship winner, as well as 3-times NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship winner, and a 2-time champion of the IWGP Intercontinental and IWGP Tag Team prime tournaments in the NJPW organization
- Having a huge fanbase online with more than 400k followers on Twitter
First Wrestling Match
Hiroshi Tanahashi made his wrestling debut for the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) organization in a match against Shinya Makabe in October 1999.
He made his North American wrestling debut for the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) organization in a tag team match alongside Shinsuke Nakamura against the Mexican “Los Guerreros Laguneros” wrestling group in September 2005.
Hiroshi Tanahashi made his United States debut with the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) organization at the Final Resolution event against A.J. Styles on January 14, 2006, which he lost.
First Film
Hiroshi Tanahashi made his feature film debut as Soji Kuruse in the action film Kamen Rider Heisei Generations: Dr. Pac-Man vs. Ex-Aid & Ghost with Legend Rider in 2016.
First TV Show
Hiroshi Tanahashi made his first TV show appearance as ‘Himself’ in an episode of the sport series NJPW Samurai TV in 2002.
Personal Trainer
Hiroshi leads an active blog, and typically posts monthly workout updates. Even though he lists a lot of exercises, he mentioned that he likes to keep his body guessing. As such, Hiroshi omits or adds exercises based on how his body feels on a certain day to prevent more injuries and overtraining. Using that principle, he was not only able to avoid hitting a plateau but also to come back to wrestling after elbow, shoulder, and arms injuries. In June 2019, his monthly workout split typically consisted of exercises such as:
- Lat machine – 5 sets
- Lat machine reverse narrow – 4 sets
- Cable lat pullover – 3 sets
- Lat pulldown parallel grip – 4 sets
- Shrugs – 3 sets
- Smith machine bent rowing – 3 sets
- Cable pullovers and cable rows – 4 sets
- Finisher: Stationary bike cardio – 30 minutes, Abdominals, Stretching
Chest
- Incline bench press – 5 sets
- Bench press – 5 sets
- Hammer incline press – 4 sets
- Dumbbell fly – 3 sets
- Cable crossover – 3 sets
- Peck fly – 3 set
- Finisher: Abs, 30-minute cardio on treadmill/bike
- Dumbbell hammer curls – 4 sets
- Dumbbell curls – 3 sets
- Barbell curls – 3 sets
- Barbell reverse curl – 3 sets
- Cable curls – 3 sets
- Finisher: StairMaster cardio – 30 minutes, Crunches 100 reps
- Cable rear delts – 4 sets
- One hand cable side raises – 3 sets
- Cable upright raises – 4 sets
- Smith machine front shoulder Press – 4 sets
- Dumbbell side raises – 5 sets
- Dumbbell front raises – 4 sets
- Machine lateral raises – 4 sets
- Shoulder rear with lat machine – 3 sets
- One hand cable rear array – 3 sets
- Machine shoulder press – 5 sets
- Finisher: Stationary bike cardio – 30 minutes, Abdominals, Stretching
- One hand cable press down – 5 sets
- Cable press down – 4 sets
- Seated barbell triceps extension – 3 sets
- Smith machine narrow press – 3 sets
- Push-ups (He adds weight accordingly) – 3 sets of 20 reps
- Finisher: 100 Crunches, Stretching
As for the diet, in order to maintain his bodybuilder physique with a bit of fat for maximum strength, he does include cheat meals from time to time. His favorites are ice cream and hamburgers, and he often orders 4-6 of them at once and goes all-out so he can soothe his cravings. Of course, he also drinks a lot of water throughout the day and is known for carrying a large bottle or a shaker with him wherever he goes.
Hiroshi Tanahashi Favorite Things
- Wrestler – Shawn Michaels
- Personal Quote – “Not tired, not depressed, not giving up.”
Source – Twitter Bio, Wikipedia
Hiroshi Tanahashi Facts
- He was born in 1976, which is a year of the Dragon with a Fire element in the Chinese calendar. The Chinese calendar stated that he will be very intelligent and social, and have an early breakthrough in life and enjoy prosperity in later years, which proved to be true.
- He has an O blood type.
- He is part of the “One talented person in 100 years,” or “Once in a century” TV trope in Japan. It means that his professional wrestling story fits many of the “arcs” of an underdog climbing to the top with a few unique elements.
- After his Japanese wrestling debut in 1999, he was considered one of the “new Three Musketeers,” alongside Katsuyori Shibata and Shinsuke Nakamura.
- Hiroshi was supposed to fight Brock Lesnar for the NJPW’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship title in 2006. Brock failed to show up for the match and was stripped of the title. Hiroshi proceeded to fight Giant Bernard on July 17, 2006, and won his 1st title.
- In 2016, his left shoulder was in such a bad shape that he couldn’t even lift a water bottle. He dislocated the shoulder in January of that year but persevered through the pain so he could continue competing, and it caught up to him.
- Hiroshi has his own blog via the Ameblo platform, through which his fanbase can follow him on his travels, and have an insight into his mindset, workout schedule, and diet plan.
- Some of the wrestling moves he is best known for are ‘Dragon Rocket,’ ‘Dragon Suplex,’ ‘Dragon Sleeper,’ ‘Rolling Senton,’ ‘Texas Cloverleaf,’ ‘Powerbomb,’ and ‘High Fly Flow.’
- Hiroshi played a role of Takashi Omura in the 2018 movie Papa wa Warumono Champion. The movie was based on comic books where a dad who was a popular wrestler once, falls from grace and becomes a villain.
- In late April 2019, Hiroshi had surgery on his left elbow. The injury caught up to him during the G1 Supercard match on April 6, 2019, which he lost against Zack Sabre Jr.
- Visit his official blog @ ameblo.jp/highfly-tana.
Featured Image by Tabercil / Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 3.0
